QUESADILLA DE HONGOS CON QUESO DE CABRA

MUSHROOM QUESADILLA WITH GOATS CHEESE

SERVES: 2

COOKING TIME:10 MINUTES

In this video we’ll be preparing a delicious mushroom quesadilla. The term ‘quesadilla’ comes from the word “queso,” (meaning cheese in Spanish) and has its origins in colonial Mexico. Cheese was brought to Mexico by the Spaniards, and since the Mexicans already had tortillas, they put them together and a fantastic dish was born.

Simply put, a quesadilla consists of a tortilla folded in half, or two tortillas, with cheese and filling in the middle. You could say that it is a Mexican version of a cheese toastie. Another way to prepare them is by using a single tortilla which is then folded in half. They are a versatile dish that can be served for breakfast (quesadillas made with scrambled egg as a filling are quite popular for breakfast in many parts of Mexico), lunch or dinner. In the coastal regions you can get them filled with prawns, which combines perfectly with the melted cheese and some spicy salsa.

I decided to use a fancy goat cheese mixed with some cheddar, but you can get creative and use any other cheese you like, with stringy cheese (like Oaxaca or mozzarella) being the most common one in Mexico.

To warm up the tortillas I will use a traditional flat Mexican pan called a comal. It is made from cast iron and is thinner than most cooking pans. This helps it get hot very quickly, and is a traditional way of heating tortillas in many places where gas burners are not available. Since it is so thin, a small amount of wood or charcoal is more than enough to heat it up. But comales obviously aren’t common in the Australian kitchen, so use an ordinary frying pan, or a sandwich press for a super quick and easy way to make your quesadillas.

INGREDIENTS

8 La Tortilleria corn tortillas

200 g wild mushrooms

1 jalapeño

1/2 onion

1 garlic clove

Cooking oil

200 g goat's cheese

100g cheddar cheese

2 tbsp of milk

Salsa to serve

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Finely chop the onion, garlic and jalapeño. Heat a small amount of oil in a hot pan. Sauté onions, then the garlic, until translucent. Add the mushrooms and jalapeño (adding more or less as desired) and cook until soft.

Soften the goat cheese by adding the milk. Use a fork to mix it and dissolve any lumps.

For each quesadilla, heat one side of the tortilla for 10 seconds on a hot frying pan using no oil. Turn over and immediately spread cheese and add a slice of cheddar. Place some mushroom mix evenly on the tortilla. Fold the tortilla in half and leave in the pan, occasionally turning, until tortilla is crunchy.